World's 'funnest' theme parks

By Barry Neild, CNN

Updated 0707 GMT (1407 HKT) August 22, 2014

The world's funnest theme parks10 photos

10. Buffalo Bill's Resort and Casino (Nevada) – "Theme Park Guy" Stefan Zwanzger describes Buffalo Bill's Resort and Casino on the Nevada-California border as the home of a "ruthless ride standing in the desert that shakes you up before allowing you to continue to Vegas."

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The world's funnest theme parks10 photos

9. Happy Zone (Yangon, Myanmar) – Despite the low budget, creators of the Happy Zone in Yangon, Myanmar, poured their passion into the park. "There's such an overdose of ghosts and puppets, it's one of the funnest things I've ever done," says Zwanzger.

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The world's funnest theme parks10 photos

8. OCT East (Shenzhen, China) – China's answer to Walt Disney World, OCT East in Shenzhen is an equally vast, sprawling park consisting of a seaside level and a mountaintop level with fantastic views of the park.

6. Cedar Point (Sandusky, Ohio) – Zwanzger says parks that rely on a single ride can be disappointing. But Ohio's Cedar Point, stacked with coasters and thrill rides, is the place to get your scream on.

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5. Tropical Islands (Krausnick, Germany) – In Krausnick, Germany, the Asian-themed Tropical Islands indoor water park is in a huge hangar originally built to manufacture airships. In winter, visitors bask on a tropical beach beneath the snow-covered roof.

3. Disneyland (Anaheim, California) – Southern California's Disneyland is the original theme park and still one of the best, says Zwanzger. Who'd have thought a German castle at the end of an American high street would become so popular?

Story highlights

Stefan Zwanzger, aka the Theme Park Guy, travels the world in search of the best gated fun parks

Tokyo DisneySea tops his list of favorites for "impeccable theming" that includes erupting volcanoes

The original theme park, Disneyland makes his list, as does Happy Zone, a low-budget park in Myanmar

What makes a truly fun theme park?

Is it the rides, the size of the budget, the staff in big-eared costumes hugging kids?

For Stefan Zwanzger, who's visited no fewer than 264 parks in 92 countries in his guise as "The Theme Park Guy" -- a self-funded roving reviewer of gated entertainment centers around the world -- it's when all of the above combine to work their magic.

"A great theme park is one you leave and don't forget about instantly," he tells CNN. "I'm really curious about the whole experience.

"I wonder about the atmosphere that's been created and what the vision for the park is."

The German-born Zwanzger, who grew up in Munich and who has lived in Berlin, Dubai and London, says he judges a theme park not just on the quality of the rides but on whether the attraction's creators achieved the vision and atmosphere they set out to create.

"A good ride is like a good movie, it surprises you," he says. "There should be at least one unexpected twist in the story. There are very few good rides out there in the world -- most are predictable.

"A standalone ride on its own for me has little fun factor, I really like theme parks because they're not fun fairs.

"Fun fairs are a collection of rides. A theme park is a gated experience, and the moment you pass through the gates you should be entering a different world. And if this world surprises or inspires you, then it's fun."

Here are Zwanzger's top 10 "funnest" theme parks:

1. Tokyo DisneySea (Urayasu, Japan)

Zwanzger says: "This park is based around a truly unique concept, with science fiction author Jules Verne at its center.

"Verne lived in the 19th century and wrote futuristic novels, and large parts of this park are modeled after the way he was imagining the future back then -- it recreates a future that's never existed.

"It's impeccably themed with erupting volcanoes, giant drilling machines and Jules Verne-themed rides. There's also a Middle Eastern corner, an Adventure/Indiana Jones corner and a Mediterranean Harbor -- everything in the park is based on stories about the sea.

"I love Disney parks, but DisneySea really stands out because it's markedly character free. It has the Disney budget, talent and vision, but tells a completely different story than Donald and Mickey.

"It's a great collection of rides with the world's best theming and you can really see a huge budget at work."

Zwanzger says: "This park is housed in a huge hangar originally constructed to build cargo airships.

"The company went bust before the first ship had ever been built, so they were left with the vast hangar some 50 kilometers south of Berlin -- and no one knew what to do with it.

"Then a Malaysian investor came along and used it to create an Asian-themed indoor water park with a beach.

"Water parks with an Asian theme and palm trees and beaches are fairly normal, but when you see this place in the winter time with all the Germans and Czechs and Poles sitting there in a tropical environment staring up at that gigantic ceiling, it feels like a Mars colony."

Zwanzger says: "I've only been here before the Winter Olympics when the park was still under construction, but I'm really looking forward to going back.

"This is Russia's first ever theme park, and it's an ambitious project with a big budget and quality rides imported from Europe.

"So many theme parks think they need an intellectual property, so they get characters running around, hugging the kids, but I think the creators can be much more bold and try something else, like theming it around the history of a country or region.

"This is what they've tried to do here -- create a window on Russia. I've been to Russia many times and I think it's a super fascinating country.

"For an amusement park-loving person this will certainly be a great place to see before exploring the rest of the country.

"Russia needs more tourists and contrary to all the bad press they always get, Russian people are great hosts and it's a joy to visit there."

"There's two levels, seaside and mountain, connected with a really stunning funicular train, creating an amusement park spread over a vast area. I've never seen anything as big as this except in Disney World.

"Not everything is the highest quality, but they have some good rides, many of them imported, and it's just so big and spectacular, particularly the view from the top.

"Everyone who visits Hong Kong and loves theme parks should make their way over there, it's about 45 minutes from the Hong Kong-China border by taxi."